Portable and bench-top x-ray fluorescent (XRF), optical emission spectrographic (OES) and other analytical instruments are used throughout the world for determining elemental and chemical compositions of samples, such as metals, soils and plastics. In some cases, results of these analyses are stored in the instruments or archived in company databases, etc., sometimes with user-entered identifying information, such as time and date of analysis, instrument operator's name, etc.
In one common application, such instruments are used in metal recycling facilities to facilitate sorting large and small pieces of scrap metal. In such facilities, the scrap pieces are physically sorted and segregated into piles of similarly composed materials. For example, ferrous metals may be separated from nonferrous metals. After each piece of metal is analyzed, such as with a hand-held instrument, the piece is moved to an area of the recycling facility where similarly composed pieces are stockpiled.
Later, if it becomes desirable to more finely sort the pieces in one stockpile, for example, if it becomes desirable to sort the ferrous metals according to alloy type, each piece in the ferrous stockpile must be analyzed again, and the re-analyzed pieces must be physically moved again to create separate stockpiles of, for example, cast iron, stainless steel, wrought iron, etc. Re-analyzing the pieces and then moving the pieces to the separate stockpiles takes time. Even if the pieces were originally segregated according to alloy, requiring a separate stockpile for each material composition requires a large amount of real estate, because each stockpile must be separated from the other stockpiles by enough space to operate material moving equipment.
In other common applications, such instruments are used to analyze, identify or certify elemental concentrations or chemical compositions of materials. For example, such instruments are used to: quantify the amount of gold or other precious metals in jewelry; identify plastics that have excessive amounts of toxic elements; or certify soil that has less than a predetermined amount of a toxic chemical. However, securely conveying certifications or other information about analyzed materials when the materials change hands is difficult, particularly if the materials are conveyed through a long chain of ownership.